Oh, we know all about the CIA and the likes of them, don’t we? Of course we do! If some genius over there comes up with the idea to inject shady concoctions into unsuspecting college students as part of an experiment, well, they don’t hesitate. They just go for it. And if a few people drop dead in the process, they probably figure it’s not too steep a price to pay for developing psychic abilities… Of course, messing around with the secrets of the universe always comes with a side of danger. You can bet the real trouble only begins if the experiment actually works. When the genie’s out of the bottle. Or when someone shows up who can set things on fire. With their mind. Easily. And on any scale. A Firestarter, if you will.
Firestarter Walk With Me
Stephen King has never shied away from the supernatural. (There. We said it.) The pyrokinesis that serves as the basis for Firestarter may have been heard of before—if nowhere else, then at least in connection with so-called spontaneous combustion. And it’s no secret that during the Cold War, both the Americans and the Soviets were digging into the mysteries of the human mind. (With, let’s say, varying degrees of success.)
Still, having a real, living, breathing fire mage? That’s a whole different level!
In any fantasy book, a character like that would be your trump card, your ace up the sleeve. But the CIA—this bunch of hopeless amateurs—manages to screw everything up as usual. Honestly, how would you deal with a child with pyrokinesis? I’m guessing you’d approach her with the utmost care, perfect understanding, and sincere goodwill—oh, and a fire extinguisher within arm’s reach.
The CIA, instead, chooses to constantly provoke and piss her off. Charlie McGee (yep, the Firestarter) is just 7 years old when the story begins. And she’s absolutely adorable. A sweet little girl. She should just be getting the occasional ice cream or lollipop and she’d be your best friend for life.
But obviously, ice cream’s not quite enough for a high-temperature supernatural thriller. And let’s face it, it would melt instantly anyway.
Don’t Play With Firestarters!
Firestarter, Stephen King’s paranoid supernatural thriller, was published in 1980. That’s 45 years ago. Just saying it feels like a lot. I just reread it for the third time, and honestly? I think I enjoy it more with each read. Nostalgia? Maybe. But probably not.
The big lesson still holds true today: “Don’t play with fire.” Or more precisely: “Don’t mess with the Firestarter.”
What has aged a bit in King’s novel is surprisingly little. The stuff with the computers definitely sticks out. The geniuses at The Shop are feeding punch cards into a supercomputer that, on one hand, is suspiciously brilliant (kind of like a primitive version of our current all-knowing AIs), but on the other hand is ridiculously clunky and dumb.
But everything we love about Stephen King’s work is still right there in Firestarter. Suspense, adventure, tragedy. Intrigue and revenge.
Characters you can really connect with. And who better than the kind of parents who’d literally give up their lives for their child?
Or the good-hearted, salt-of-the-earth American folks you know you can count on when the going gets tough.
Set This House on Fire
Great power comes with great responsibility. No question about that. But King’s Firestarter is someone who, for now, has no idea how to handle that power. She’s in no way ready for a challenge this big. And that’s the core of the book’s main conflict—aside, of course, from the small matter of a bunch of kindling-grade CIA (well, The Shop) agents constantly trying to destroy the McGee family.
Because really—what do you do when your baby sets the furniture on fire just by being in the room? Fireproof diapers can only go so far. You’d need to train it out of her somehow… But what if the U.S. government is actively trying to kill you, and your daughter’s basically a walking flamethrower? This is definitely no country for young girls…
This Indian Thinks He’s Fireproof?
Ah, the good old days when Stephen King still wrote about real hitmen! (Not those sensitive-souled, do-gooder types like, say, Billy Summers.) John Rainbird, The Shop’s hitman, is obsessed with death. Both others’ and his own. He’s rotten, cynical, and burnt out. A perfect villain.
Rainbird is a full-on maniac. Total scumbag. But what’s really wild is that despite all that, he’s so physically and mentally indestructible that you end up feeling kind of sympathetic toward him. While reading Firestarter, there’s this persistent thought in the back of your mind: Maybe this weirdly immoral, self-righteous guy is going to redeem himself. After all, here’s the perfect chance—forgiveness and salvation, gift-wrapped in the form of a vulnerable, ahem, little girl.
The Firestarter Gets Fired Up
What’s the secret behind Firestarter’s enduring appeal? Well, it’s not exactly a head-scratcher.
A scummy government goes after a sweet, angelic little girl and the people she loves. The reckless scientists at The Shop let the genie out of the bottle—and then try to stuff it back in. With brute force. Not exactly hard to figure out which side you’re rooting for.
Charlie McGee—basically the Daenerys Targaryen of the Stephen King universe—doesn’t even need dragons. Her power keeps growing. So does her rage. They chase her, threaten her, use her. They threaten her very existence. And her family’s too. At some point, obviously, a single spark is all it takes. And the Firestarter does exactly what her name promises.
Rating: 8.3/10
Firestarter by Stephen King
564 pages, Mass Market Paperback
Published in 1998 by Signet
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